1. Technical Field
This invention generally relates to the field of wireless communications. More particularly, this invention relates to a system and method for efficient transparent Mobile Internet Protocol (MIP) registration within Point-to-Point (PPP) Protocol negotiation.
2. Description of Related Art
Recent advances in wireless communications and the rapid expansion of use of the Internet have greatly increased the demand for mobile computing. Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology has played a critical role in meeting that demand.
CDMA is a digital radio-frequency (RF) technique defined in the Telecommunications Industry Association/Electronics Industries Association Interim Standard-95, entitled “MOBILE STATION-BASE STATION COMPATIBILITY STANDARD FOR DUAL-MODE WIDEBAND SPREAD SPECTRUM CELLULAR SYSTEM,” which was published in July 1993 and which is incorporated herein by reference.
CDMA communications devices assign a unique code to communications signals and spread those signals across a common spread-spectrum bandwidth. As long as the communications device has the correct code, it can successfully detect and select its signal from among other signals concurrently transmitted over the same bandwidth.
The increased reliability of mobile communications has led to a demand for remote wireless computing where a computing device, such as a laptop computer or palmtop computer, is remotely coupled to a computer network (e.g., the Internet) via the mobile telephone. Although IS-95 does not define the necessary protocol for such remote wireless computing, a number of standards do exist. The Internet Protocol (IP) standard has been incorporated into many wireless communication devices. The standard Request For Comment No. 791 (RFC 791) entitled INTERNET PROTOCOL DARPA INTERNET PROGRAM PROTOCOL SPECIFICATION, published in September 1981, is a network layer protocol that accommodates packetization of data for transmission. The addressing and routing information is included in packet headers. The headers contain addresses that identify the sending and receiving devices. These addresses are used by routers within the network to select a path to relay each packet to its ultimate destination at the intended destination address.
Another well-known protocol in wireless communications is the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP), used to control wireless communications access to a computer network (e.g., the Internet). The PPP protocol is described in Request For Comment 1661 (RFC 1661), entitled THE POINT-TO-POINT PROTOCOL (PPP), published July 1994. The PPP protocol specifies standards for transporting data of point-to-point links including a technique for encapsulating multi-protocol data, a Link Control Protocol (LCP) to establish and configure a data link and Network Control Protocols (NCPs) to establish and configure network-layer protocols.
Another standard, designated IETF RFC 2002. entitled IP MOBILITY SUPPORT FOR IPv4 (a/k/a Mobile IP) provides communications standards for Mobile IP, but does not address wireless aspects of mobile computing.
With the adoption of third generation (3G) standards for CDMA communication, telecommunication standards have been introduced for wireless network communication. Telecommunication Standard IS-835, entitled CDMA 2000 WIRELESS NETWORK STANDARD, published in June 2000, and telecommunication standard IS-835A, published in May 2001 mandate a certain communication protocol for use with 3G CDMA devices.
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a wireless computer network connection. In FIG. 1 a terminal equipment (TE) 10 may be a laptop, palmtop, or other conventional computing device. The TE 10 is coupled to a wireless communication device, such as a mobile telephone (MT) 12. The TE 10 communicates with the MT 12 via a connection designated by standards as an Rm interface. The Rm interface may be implemented by a variety of known technologies. For example, the Rm interface could be implemented via conventional RS-232, RS-422, IEEE 4888, IEEE 1394, Bluetooth Technology, or the like. These conventional interface technologies are well known in the art and need not be described herein. The present invention is not limited by the specific form of the Rm interface.
The TE 10 and MT 12 may conveniently be collectively characterized as a mobile station (MS) 14, as indicated by the dashed lines in FIG. 1. The MT 12 includes a transmitter 16 and receiver 18 that operate in a known fashion to permit voice or data communications with a remote location.
The wireless communication system of FIG. 1 also includes a base station transceiver system (BTS) 20, which may also comprise a mobile switching center (MSC). The BTS 20 communicates with the MS 14 via a wireless interface, designated by standards as a Um interface. Operational details of the Um interface are known to those of ordinary skill in the art and need not be described in greater detail herein. The BTS 20 is coupled to a computer network 22 via an interface, designated by standards as an L interface. Operational details of the L interface is also designated by industry standards and need not be described in greater detail herein.
To establish a communication link between the TE 10 and the network 22, communication data packets are exchanged via the Rm and Um interfaces and a PPP session must be established. The various protocols and standards described above provide a framework for implementing a wireless computer network connection. The actual implementation of hardware and software within that framework is left to the discretion of the designer. While the various standards described above provide for such Mobile IP registration, the overlapping standards often result in inefficiencies in the registration process. Therefore, it can be appreciated that there is a significant need for an optimized registration process for mobile computing applications. The present invention provides this, and other advantages, as will be apparent from the following detailed description and accompanying figures.